Shark empress
by blackwind-hurricane
Summary: 3 days after the winter war, Aizen is dead, Ichimaru is gone, and Ichigo finds an injured arrancar not far from his home. What will happen? IchigoXHallibel rated T for violence, and mentions of sexytime. not to mention I'm paranoid.  Slight AU.
1. Chapter 1

It had been 3 days ever since the end of the winter war.

3 days, since Aizen had been defeated. A lot could change in 3 days. A lot _had _changed in those 3 days. Ichigo sighted. Sensing the hollow he had tracked down coming from behind, he turned around, and his hand moved to his left hip, were zangetsu was in its black sheath. That was something he wasn't quite used to. Being a captain, he had undergone several last-minute training sessions, including sealing his zanpakutou, and mastering kidou.

The latter had been, much to everyone's surprise, really easy for Ichigo. Sure, it had exploded in his face several times, but he had already mastered most of the kidou spells. It wasn't that much different when he compared it to his _getsuga tenshou_. It was the same principle. And both Tessai and Hachigen had taught him well. Like all his other skills, he had mastered it awfully quick. 36 hours. That was all it had taken him to complete all kidou techniques up untill 60. Of course, he had trouble remembering all those incantations, and sure, it had exploded in his face a couple of times. But then again, he had time to improve. Plenty of time.

He swung down his sword, and the monkey like hollow started to disintegrate.

He turned around, and another memory came. Renji and Ikkaku. Both had been appointed captain. Renji was now the captain of the 9th division, while a very pissed Ikkaku was now in charge of the 5th division, to the dismay of Hinamori, who was, and rightfully so, slightly afraid of her new captain. But Ikkaku was doing just fine, even with the paperwork. Then again, a certain teal-eyed captain had treathened to turn him into an icicle if he heard but the slightest complaint from Hinamori. Renji was doing fine as well, he got along with Hisagi pretty well, so no problems there.

Ichigo's thoughts were interrupted by a deep, masculine voice.

'Ichigo'

He looked up, and saw his friend, Sado Yasutora, better known as Chad.

'Yo, Chad. What're you doing here?' the orange haired captain asked his friend.

'Felt the reatsu of the hollow.' was the only thing he got for an answer.

They walked home.

'So Ichigo. How are things going in Soul Society?' his question puzzled Ichigo. Chad wasn't really the type for some iddle chit-chat.

'Fine. I guess. Kira called it quits though, he decided to join the kidou corps, so I'll have to find myself a new lieutant.'

Chad merely nodded.

While talking, they had reached Ichigo's house. Chad waved, and left.

As soon as he opened the door, Ichigo was greeted by his dad, the same way as usual.

'HELLOOOOOO ICHIGOOOOOO!!!' Ichigo sidestepped, and his dad flew past him, crash-landing in the garden.

Ichigo slowly entered.

'I'm going to my room.' he announced to his sisters.

'But what about your food?' Yuzu asked, adopting a worried tone.

'I'm not hungry' he merely replied, and walked up the stairs.

As soon as he entered his room, he noticed something strange; Kon was pressing his ear against his closet. When he came closer, he heard the moans coming from it.

"_Aww damn, not my closet" _he thought. No matter how happy he was for Rukia and Renji for getting together, making love in his closet was more than he could handle.

He grabbed his shinigami badge, and pressed it against his chest, releasing his spirit form. He opened the window, and jumped out of it.

After flashstepping aimlessly around Karukura town, Ichigo's thoughts started to wander off.

Everything seemed save. But it wasn't. There was still someone, or rather, somehting, out there that was dangerous to both soul society and the human world. Ichimaru Gin. After stealing the hougyoky from Aizen, he had fled, and with most of the captains severly wounded, nobody had been able to follow him. Of course, search parties had been sent after him. But personally, Ichigo very much doubted that any captain below captain class was able to find, much less defeat Ichimaru.

For the third time that day, his thoughts were interrupted. His feet had subconsiously brought him to the place were the battle had taken place 3 days ago. A powerful gust of wind send his haori rippling in the wind, making the sign of the 3rd squat almost hypnotizing to look at. But that was not what had disturbed him. Below him, in the small speck of trees, he felt spikes of reatsu, around lieutant class. Without a second thought, he dashed off towards it.

Ichigo landed in the woods. Infront of him were tree figures, obviously arrancar, standing around something.

'Is this her?' the first one asked. He had short blond hair, and half his face was covered by a white mask, that resembled a bear.

'I think so. She matches the description master Ichimaru gave us.' The second said. This one's hair could not be seen; it was covered by the back of a hollow mask, that was attached to his face with several stripes.

'We're lucky she is wounded though. Otherwise she just might have killed us.' the third one said. This one was female, with a bird like mask covering most of her face.

Ichigo's thoughts raged. They were going to kill a defenseless person. Not if he could help it. And he could. He flash-stepped right into their midst, picking up the person that was lying on the ground, unconscious. He flastepped back to where he had landed.

'you pieces of trash. Don't you have any shame? What person would cut down someone who can't defend himself?' he snarled, putting down the figure. He stood back up, and unsheated his sword.

'A shinigami.' the first one said, sounding surprised

'Who thought that Someone -' the second one started.

'Like you would save someone like her.' the last one finished

'Enough with the talk already! Give us the girl, shinigami!' the first one shouted.

'And if I don't?' Ichigo asked, a smirk forming on his face.

'We'll kill you and take her ourselves.' the bird-like arrancar said.

Ichigo continued to taunt them, by saying: 'you and whose army?'

In response, the tree arrancars raised their swords

'Fly.'

'Crash.'

'Dive.'

Before any of them could complete their resureccion phrase, all three of them were cut down, an X sliced across theirs chests. They fell to the ground, and disintegrated. Ichigo resheated his sword, and walked back to the girl lying on the ground.

He looked down at her.

She wore white arrancar attire, and her jacket hung open, revealing the mask covering her jaw, and that went down dow her breasts. She had a tanned skin, that contrasted with her clothes. She had blonde hair in 3 small braids. Her eyes were closed. But what really caught his eye, was the number tattooëd on her right breast. 3. She was one of the espada. But the other ones had wanted to kill her under Ichimaru's orders. She might know something important. Deciding that they needed her, he picked her up again, and flashstepped away.

Ichigo arrived at Orihime's house, and ringed the bell.

Her happy voice sounded from the intercom.

'Yes, who's there?'

'It's me, Ichigo. I need a huge favor of you, Inoue.' Ichigo replied

her tone turned serious when she heard that.

'Come in.'

The door was opened by none other than Uryuu Ishida.

It didn't surprise Ichigo much. The two had been together ever since they had returned to the human world.

'Ah, Kurosaki, come in. Inoue told me it's urgent.' he said, looking at the girl Ichigo was carrying.

They walked to the living room, and Ichigo laid down the girl on a bed.

'Kurosaki, have you gone mad?' Uryuu exclaimed, pointing at the figure on the bed.

'What?'

'That's an arrancar. The enemy. Why shoud Inoue heal her?'

Ichigo sighted, and quickly told the quincy about what he had seen.

'So, I came to the conclusion that she has some kind of crucial knowledge.' he finished

'I understand. But do you have taken the fact into consideration that she might attack us as soon as she is healed?' Uryuu asked.

'that's why I am here.' the orange haired shinigami replied, impatiently

'It's okay. I trust you, Ichigo. ' Orihime said, as she started healing. The well known yellow force field hovered over the girl.

After about 2 hours of healing, the force field dissappeared. All the wounds were gone.

'She will wake up shortly.' Orihime announced. The atmosphere tensed up.

The girl stirred, and opened her eyes. When she did, Ichigo's train of thoughts came to an abrupt end. Her eyes were a blueish green, like the sea at a white beach, andd equally dangerous when it came to drowning.

The girl blinked a few times, and sat up.

'Where am I, and who are you?' she asked, in a calm voice, that didn't betray any emotions.

'My name is Ichigo Kurosaki, Substitute shinigami, and newly appointed captain of squad tree. And to were you are, you are in a friends house in Karakura town.'

Ichigo watched the girl carefully while he said that. When he mentioned shinigami, her hand shot to her sword, but it wasn't there.

'Relax, we won't hurt you, I promise' he said, his voice gentle.

'Where did you put my-'

'Your sword?' Ichigo held up the short, broad sword in it's pink sheath.

'Sorry, but we had to take it from you. We couldn't risk you attacking us all.'

She merely nodded in response.

She turned to Orihime. 'were you the one that healed me?' she asked.

'Yes.' Orihime spoke, a bit timidly, while grabbing Uryuu's hand

'Thank you.'

She turned to Ichigo

Before she could ask something, however, he asked her:

'So who are you?'

'My name is Tia Hallibel. The 3rd Espada.'


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey....here is chapter 2 of my story, "Shark empress"**

**it's a little bit bigger than the first one, but who cares.**

**Thanks to those who send me a review. **

**Next,I welcome any advice you got, and I do not mind critism. **

**Reviews would be nice, but you don't have to. **

**Oh, And after going through all my stuff, I noticed that I do not own bleach.**

**Enjoy reading!**

Ichigo looked at the sleeping form of the arrancar on the ground. Just after she had said her name, she had passed out again, this time of exhaustion.

He tore away his eyes, and unsheathed zangetsu, and stabbed it in the air, and twisted it. The gate to soul society appeared, and he stepped inside.

When he entered soul society, he immedeatly flash-stepped away.

Several seconds later, he knocked on the door of the meeting room. The double doors opened, revealing the two rows of white cloaked figures. He noticed he was the last. He took his place in the left row between Soi Fon and Unohana. The wooden staff of the head-captain crashed down on the floor.

'I hereby declare this meeting, requested by the 3rd division captain, open!' he announced, slamming his staff on the floor once more.

Ichigo stepped forward.

'I have this requested this meeting because of a discovery I did in the real world.' he said, looking at the old shinigami in front of him.

Behind him, Kenpachi muttered something that sounded like "Like I care". He ignored him.

'Which would be...?' Ukitake asked.

'I found an injured Espada, in the woods of Karakura town. She was about to be killed by several others, who appeared to be under the command of Gin Ichimaru. Deciding that she might have some information about Ichimaru, I saved her, and killed the other three, who had reiatsu below lieutant's class. I had her healed by Inoue, and she is currenly recovering from her injuries.' When he finished his story, Hitsugaya gasped, and stepped forward.

'Yes, captain Hitsugaya?' Yammamoto asked.

'What was her name?' He asked, his voice tense.

'Tia Hallibel, the- ' Ichigo was cut short by Hitsugaya

'3rd Espada. I fought her. She was betrayed, and cut down by Aizen himself. As such, she might be willing to tell us whatever she knows.' The white haired captain finished.

'What nonsense. I say we dissect her, and search for clues on how they were created.' Kurosuchi Mayuri had spoken up. When he wanted to continue, however, Ichigo glared at him, emanating killer intent.

Another captain stepped forward. It was Kuchiki Byakuya.

'I doubt she will tell some random person everything she knows. I suggest that we send someone she can confide in.' he said, his face stern.

Suddenly, Ichigo noticed that most captains were looking expectingly at him.

'I agree with the captain Kuchiki.' Captain Unohana said, nodding.

The wooden staff came down on the floor once again.

'I agree with both captains. Now, since it would be foolish to send anyone below captain level, I will send one of you to the human world. Any volunteers?'

He was interrupted by Ichigo.

'That's a repulsive thing to do, send someone to act like her friend, and when said person has the information, he will just...stab her in the back?! I disagree!'

Yammamoto's reiatsu flared. 'It is not your place to do so, captain Kurosaki. This plan will be executed, no matter how much you object!'

Just when Ichigo was about to say something rash and insulting, Ukitake cut in.

'It doesn't have to be like that. Even when we know what we want to know, we won't just kill her. That isn't the style of the Gotei thirteen.'

'If you promise not to kill her, when we know what we want to, I'll go.' Ichigo said, deciding he would try to minimize the damage.

'Very well.' The grey bearded shinigami said. 'Meeting dismissed.' he added

As the captains left the room, Kyouraku and Ukitake walked up to the orange-haired shinigami.

'Relax, Ichigo. You have the old man's word.' Kyouraku said, while smiling and adjusting his hat.

'Yeah. But when I first came here, he promised Rukia not to harm us, but he wasn't planning on keeping that promise. So I do not trust his word as I would someone else's.' Ichigo said, still not liking the idea.

While talking, they walked to the senkaimon, and when the doors opened, and Ichigo was about to get back to his own world, a hand grabbed his shoulder. It was Ukitake.

'Remember what I said, Ichigo. The friendship, or however you want to call it, doesn't have to be fake.'

'I'll keep it in mind.' Ichigo replied, somewhat cold. And with that, he entered the world of the living.

While running through the tunnel that connected both worlds, his thoughts wandered of.

Even though he disliked the way soul society worked, he grudgingly had to admit that this might be the only chance they had to get Ichimaru's whereabouts, or any other information.

He was almost there. He jumped through the white square that was his connection to the human world, and found himself in his own room. Appearently, Uryuu had dropped of Hallibel, because she was lying on his bed, asleep. Then he noticed that she wasn't in her spirit form, but a gigai. She was still wearing her arrancar attire, but her mask was gone. _"Urahara"_ Ichigo thought, and decided he would pay him a visit tomorrow.

"_great. Now where do I sleep?" _ he thought. He went to Karin's ans Yuzu's room, and took some sheets and a pillow from the closet. There was no way in hell he was going to open his own closet before it had been cleaned properly. After he had made a mental not to himself to make Rukia and Renji clean his closet, he laid down, and closed his eyes.

to next morning

Opening his eyes, Ichigo noticed 2 things: One, the curtains were opened, and two, Hallibel was sitting on his bed, blinking, and looking around. He shot a glance at the clock on his desk. 7.29.

"_Damn!"_ knowing what was to come, Ichigo readied himself in front of the window. Behind him, the clock hit 7.30. As it did, a shout was to be heard.

"GOOOOOD MORNING, ICHIGOOOOOO"

Immedeatly, said teenager jumped on the bed, and balled his fist. As soon has his fathers face appeared, he struck, causing Isshin Kurosaki to fall down, right onto the trampoline he had used to get into his room. After bouncing a couple of times, his father sat up, his face in his hands, muttering something about how his son was growing up.

Meanwhile, Ichigo turned his attention to Hallibel, who had been watching the scene with her usual plain gaze.

'So...how are you feeling?' he asked, breaking the silence.

'Well enough.' she merely said, not showing any emotion whatsoever.

'Do you...er...want to take a shower or something?' Ichigo asked, feeling awkward.

'Yes, that would be fine.' Hallibel took she towel Ichigo handed her, and she walked out of the room.

Ichigo sat down, and sighted. _"why does she act like she doesn't have any emotion?"_ it confused him. After about 10 minutes, Hallibel entered the room, with only a towel wrapped around her body, shocking the living daylights out of the carrot-top. He quickly covered his eyes with his hands, and turned around.

'What?' Hallibel asked behind him.

'Put on some clothes, will you?!' Ichigo nearly shouted, not turning around.

'I don't have any.' came the blunt reply from the teal-eyed woman. _"Oh damn, I forgot"_ it shot through his head.

'I-it's fine. I can lend you some of mine. Or my sisters. But I doubt theirs would fit you...' his voice trailed of, and he walked to the left end of his closet,(Rukia sleeps/does other stuf in the right part.) where he kept his clothes, and tossed her one of his jeans, a red T-shirt and a white hoodie. Finally, he gave her a pair of sneakers. When she was completely dressed, he opened the window, not wanting his father to see her, and said: 'Lady's first' and jumped out of the window after her.

The two of them were walking towards Urahara's, when Ichigo was suddenly tackled by what looked like a green haired blurr.

'Itsygo!'

'N-nel?'

'Yes, I am currently staying at chad's house, together with Peche and Dondochakka.' When she said this, Ichigo couldn't help but think _"Better he than me. Chad can handle three total idiots, can't he?"_ He got up.

'So, er, Nel, what are you doing here.'

'We decided to go shopping' Said a voice behind them. Ichigo and the two arrancar turned around, only to see Rangiku Matsumoto and Inoue Orihime. The three of them had become close friends. Of course, they had a lot in common. For example that they were all, as Hitsugaya said, completely nuts.

'But enough about us. Who is the beauty you're with? Finally got yourself a woman, Kurosaki?' Rangiku asked, winking.

Ichigo, as usual, flushed 50 shades of red, and he gave her his killer-glare-deluxe. Suddenly Nel gasped. 'Aren't you the former 3rd Espada?' She asked, her tone serious.

'Yes. Before Aizen Betrayed me, I was the one fo the Espada.' Hallibel said, her voice trembling.

'So were are you living now?' Inoue asked

'She crashed at my place yesterday night.' Ichigo explained.

'But those clothes really are a big no-no.' Rangiku said, shaking her head dissaprovingly.

'Hey!' Ichigo protested. 'Those are my clothes, you know.'

'Yes, but you are a boy, and obviously, Hallibel is not. C'mon girl, we're taking you shopping.' Rangiku said, and she grabbed one of the blonde's arms, while Nel took the other one.

Ichigo watched the four of them walk away, and muttered 'So much for going to Urahara's.'

Around 4 O'clock, Ichigo's cellphone went of. When he answered it, he heard Nell's voice.

'Itsygo?'

'Yeah?'

'We have a little problem at the mall . Could you come and help us?'

'What did you do?'

'Just come. Pretty please?' Ichigo could almost see how she was doing the puppy eyes thing.

'Alright, alright, I am on my way.' He sighted. He was going to regret this. Big time.

On the way there, he ran first into Uryuu, who had received a similiar call, and later Chad, who also had had something like it.

When they entered the shopping mall, they looked around.

'What do you think happened?' Uryuu asked, adjusting his glasses.

'I don't know, but-' Ichigo broke of as he noticed the four girls standing about 20 yards away.

The three boys walked towards them.

'So what was with the phone calls?' Ichigo demanded.

'Oh that. We need some persons to carry our bags.' Rangiku replied, inclining her head towards a huge mount of shopping bags.

'Don't tell me-' again, Ichigo was cut short.

'And I just noticed the arrival of three victi- I mean volunteers.'

The Uryuu and Chad looked in terror at the mountain of bags, but Ichigo was staring at Hallibel. He didn't know where they had put the clothes he had lent her, and honestly speaking, he didn't care. He just continued to stare at Hallibel. She wore a red skirt, a tight black top, and a red jacket that matched the skirt. Lastly, she wore a silky grey scarf, that shimmered as she moved. Instead of his sneakers, she wore a pair of white high heeled boots. (much like the ones in her released state)

When she noticed his gaze, she turned away, and before he could say anything, a dozen of bags where put into his hands, and he was pushed out of the mall by one of the girls.

to Ichigo's home.

Ichigo dropped the bags, and laid down on his makeshift bed on the floor. Then, he remembered something important from his conversation with Urahara.

He turned his attention towards the blonde haired girl that was looking out of the window.

'Do you miss them? The other Espada?' He asked, hoping he wasn't trespassing in a no-go area.

'Sometimes. It gets lonely, feeling like you are one of the last of your kind. It's nice to talk to Neliel. She knows what it's like.' She said. It was the largest amount of words he had ever heard from her.

Suddenly, Ichigo said: 'Teach me.'

'What do you mean?' She asked, forgetting to act like she was emotionless.

'I need to know how to use my hollow powers. You used to be a hollow. You could help me, couldn't you?'

'Hollow powers?' the dark skinned beauty asked, her voice layered with confuse and curiosity.

'Don't you know what I mean?' this time, Ichigo was the confused one

'I might. Is it like what Tousen had?' she asked, her voice tense.

'I dunno what kind of power he had, but if it included putting on a mask, then, yeah.' the substitute shinigami replied.

The arrancar sighted.

'I won't pretend that I know much about hollowfication, but I can learn you how to use your reiatsu the way we do.' she said, studying him.

Ichigo felt a blush making it's way to his face. He stood up, and looked out of the window.

'That'll be alright. I know someone who could help with the hollowfication part.'

'Let's start training tomorrow, then.' Ichigo said. When no reply came, he quicly added. 'When it's okay with you, of course.'

Hallibel seemed to snap out of a dream. 'Tomorrow will do.' she replied.

**That's it for this time folks.**

**Hope you like it... and if you feel the urge to review this, don't fight it, but just review. **

**Seriously, I don't mind.**

**Next chapter will be in Hallibel's p.o.v.**

**See ya next time**


	3. Chapter 3

**Alright, so here you guys go; Chapter 3!**

**As promised, it's in Harribel's P.O.V. I'm warning you guys, there will be some short time skips. Just so you know. Oh, and I've been receiving questions about Nel. She is in her adult form, just so you guys know. **

**Enjoy!**

Thoughts

Speech

_Thoughts_

**Title: Shopping with the bothersome threesome. Cut down in 2 minutes.**

_Flashback_

_Pain. A blade piercing her left shoulder, the ground spinning towards her& and then everything went black. _

_Darkness. It felt like the sky rested on her shoulders, un-enabling her to move even the tiniest muscle. The only thing she was able to do was sense Reiatsu, smell, and touch. _

_She felt herself getting surrounded by three spikes of familiar Reiatsu. In her mind, she could see the colors. One was green, one was blue, and the last one emitted a purple glow. _

_Suddenly, she felt another one. Black, with a small hint of red, which had something appealing to it, that lured its prey into getting close, only to strike it down when it did. _

_A weird sensation shot through her body, and all of a sudden she felt the reiatsu up close, as well as a pair of arms wrapped around her protectively. Shortly after, the black Reiatsu flared, and unable to bear the pressure any longer, she faded back into the darkness._

_Harribel opened her eyes. Somehow her wounds were healed, and as her eyes adjusted to the light she could make out the yellow force-field hovering over her. She sat up causing the force-field to shatter, but she also winced slightly realizing it would be a while until she was back to full power._

_She then examined the persons in the room. Somehow they looked familiar. Then she said: Where am I? And who are you? As soon as the orange Shinigami replied, everything came back to her. There was the battle over Karakura town, being betrayed by Aizen, and lastly, where she had seen those people before. They were the ones that had broken into Las Noches in an attempt to rescue the auburn-haired girl that was sitting next to her. _

_After a short conversation the teal-eyed woman felt her consciousness slipping away. The last thing she managed to utter was her name, which the person in front of her had asked for._

"_My name is Tia Harribel; Third Espada." After that, she was once again greeted by a black void._

_End flashback_

Harribel woke up in an unfamiliar room. She looked around, only to see an orange haired teen sleeping on the ground in the midst of the room. She instantly recognized him. Ichigo Kurosaki, substitute Soul Reaper, and the one who had determined the outcome of the **Winter War**.

This had to be his house. A glance at the clock told her it was 4 o'clock in the morning.

Harribel wondered why he had bothered to save her anyways. Wasn't she supposed to be his enemy?

Her gaze drifted back to the sleeping form on the ground. What was she going to do with her life?

The blonde woman sighed and she felt her eyelids become heavy. She lay back down and as soon as her head hit the pillow, she was gone.

Harribel sat up. The room was still dark. She opened the curtains, but immediately regretted doing so because of the bright sunlight hurting her eyes. Dazed, she blinked a couple of times. When her eyes had readjusted to the light, she noticed Ichigo was standing on the bed looking out of the window, all tensed up.

Before she could so much as open her mouth, a man with black hair tried to dive-bomb into Ichigo's room, only to be greeted by said teenager's fist.

The orange haired Shinigami turned his attention towards her.

'So...how are you feeling?' he asked.

That was something she hadn't heard for a long time. During her time with Aizen, nobody cared about each other's feelings.

'Well enough.' she replied in her usual plain voice.

'Do you...er...want to take a shower or something?' the carrot-top asked, obviously feeling awkward.

'Yes, that would be fine.' the Arrancar said while taking the towel he was holding out to her.

She made her way to the bathroom and when she got there, she moved towards the bathtub turned on the warm water. She undressed and stepped under the shower.

Finishing in the soothing water, Harribel then stepped out and walked back into Ichigo's room. He turned around, only to blush, cover his eyes, and turn around again.

'What?' She asked, examining herself in his mirror. She didn't look that bad, did she?

'Put on some clothes will you?' He shouted in a flustered tone.

The blonde girl had to force back a smirk. So he was the shy kind of guy, eh?

'I don't have any.' she said. She hadn't given it that much thought, but she would like to have some more clothes than just her Arrancar attire.

He muttered something about lending her some and proceeded to toss her some clothes from his closet.

When she was decent, Ichigo opened the window. 'Ladies first.' he stated, before the duo left the house the hard way.

They were walking towards the house of someone whom Ichigo called "Hat 'n clogs", when she felt a familiar kind of reiatsu behind her. Ichigo apparently noticed it as well, but before either of the two could act on it, Ichigo was body-slammed into the ground by a girl with long green hair.

Harribel felt a twang of annoyance in her stomach, but pushed it aside, wondering whether she should watch or do something.

'N-Nel?' Ichigo asked. The moment the Arrancar heard the name, she remembered her. Neliel tu Oderschwank, the original 3rd Espada, whose place she had taken after the betrayal by Nnoitra.

The two talked for a bit afterwards until Ichigo decided to stand up.

Suddenly, Harribel sensed two other Reiatsu behind her. One was fairly large, while the other was rather, well...weak.

She turned just around to hear one of the two newly arrived woman say: 'But enough about us. Who is the beauty you're with? Finally got yourself a woman, eh Kurosaki?'

She glanced sideways, only to see Ichigo blush madly. She almost lost her composure and smirked. Almost.

That s when Nel seemed to recognize her.

'A-aren't you the former 3rd Espada?'

Those simple words got to her. The memories of getting betrayed by someone you trusted, someone you looked up to. Suddenly she noticed the other two women. There was one with strawberry blond hair, who was obviously a Shinigami by the feel of her Reiatsu, and Orihime, who was gazing at her curiously.

'Yes, before Aizen betrayed me, I was the one of the Espada.' she replied trying, but failing to keep her voice from betraying her emotions.

'So where are you living now?' Inoue asked curious.

'She crashed at my place yesterday night.' Ichigo explained still somewhat annoyed by the presence and questions of the hyperactive blond.

'But those clothes really are a big no-no.' the endowed strawberry blonde woman said, shaking her head disapprovingly.

'Hey!' Ichigo protested accusingly, 'Those are my clothes you know.'

'Yes: but you are a boy, and obviously, she is not. C'mon girl, we're taking you shopping!' the Shinigami said as she grabbed one of the blonde's arms while Nel took the other one.

Shortly after Ichigo disappeared from sight, they released their grip on her.

'Alright! Now let's make some stores go bankrupt!' Rangiku shouted, pumping her fist in the air.

'So what kind of clothing do you like?' Nel asked curious about her; but before Harribel could reply, they had already dragged her to a shop. At the end of the day, after much shopping, the four women sat down in a small restaurant.

'So...how are things between you and Ichigo, Harribel?' Orihime asked innocently, causing said blonde to almost choke on a sip of tea.

'I don't understand what you mean. I am merely-' she was cut off by Rangiku. "Aww she is in denial. That's so cute!"

'I am most certainly not in any kind of denial!' the Arrancar managed to say.

'The only thing that he and I share is a grudge against the last remaining traitor, Gin Ichimaru' Harribel added.

'Oh whatever you say. It's a commonly known fact that if a guy lets you wear his clothes, he likes you.' Rangiku replied nonchalantly.

'The only reason I was wearing his clothes was because I didn't have my own. Besides, I didn't ask for them, he just threw them at me when I walked into his room.' Just as she finished that sentence, there was a blur besides them forming in to the Flash Mistress herself, Yoruichi.

'Let me guess; you wore either nothing or something very revealing?' she asked smirking mischievously, while she sat down in a nearby chair.

Harribel just nodded, not wanting to go into details.

'Yeah, that's Ichigo alright. I remember this time when I trained him...' Yoruichi's voice trailed off.

The five women continued to talk for a while until it was time to go.

At the mall

Harribel watched as Nel tucked her phone in her pocket after calling Chad, Ichigo and Uryuu.

She looked at her reflection in the window and thought about her day. It had been fun. She had never done something like it before...

Suddenly the blonde twirled around, recognizing the reiatsu she felt instantly, just in time so see the three guys make their way towards them.

As Rangiku started to talk, Harribel felt Ichigo's gaze on her. She felt an uneasy twinge and turned around, avoiding his stare.

They left while the three boys, who were practically invisible behind the bags, kept complaining about all sort of things.

At Ichigo's place

The teal-eyed beauty looked out of the window letting her thoughts wander, mostly about the conversations she had today.

Behind her she heard the sound of bags being dropped, and a tired Ichigo walking in lying down on top of his makeshift bed on the floor.

She was surprised to hear a question, instead of more anticipated complaining about the shopping or how much he disliked Rankigu.

'Do you miss them? The other Espada?' From the tone of his voice, Harribel could tell that he didn't really know whether this was good question or not.

'Sometimes. It gets lonely, feeling like you are one of the last of your kind. It's nice to talk to Neliel. She knows what it's like.' She replied truthfully.

Then she heard something that took her by surprise.

'Teach me.' For a moment the dark skinned girl was too surprised to say anything, but she quickly regained herself and asked, her voice still full of surprise:

'What do you mean? '

The reply was quick to come.

'I need to know how to use my hollow powers. You used to be a hollow. You could help me, couldn't you? '

Even thought she had heard something about the orange-haired teen having said hollow powers, she had never actually seen them.

'Hollow powers?' she replied, her emotions still clear in her voice, a fact that she didn't really like.

'Don't you know what I mean?' Ichigo asked, obviously feeling confused.

'I might. Is it like what Tousen had?' she asked suddenly nervous. She had seen the hollowfication of the former captain and the power he had possessed.

'I dunno what kind of power he had, but if it included putting on a mask, then, yeah.' The boy in front of her replied scratching the back of his head.

She sighed. Even though she still didn't like the idea of helping the Shinigami, she did owe him a favor.

I won't pretend that I know much about hollowfication, but I can teach you how to use your reiatsu the way we do. she said, studying the teen in front of her. Her gaze met his for a while.

She could've swore he blushed, but he looked out of the window and stated matter-of-factly 'That'll be alright. I know someone who could help with the hollowfication part.' Once he had said this, her thoughts wandered off.

'Let's start training tomorrow then. she heard those words very faintly.' She didn't reply.

'When it's okay with you, of course.' suddenly she realized her thoughts had wandered off, and she so quickly replied

'Tomorrow will do.'

And with that, both she and Ichigo went to bed.

But once she was lying on her (borrowed) bed, she looked at the ceiling.

She had only been in the mortal world for two days, but already she noticed her mental walls were getting thinner, much to her dislike. She had learned that emotions are just what you're not looking for on a battlefield. Just as the teal eyed Arrancar tried to push away the thoughts that were coming up, she was distracted by a small spike of reiatsu: A familiar kind& an Arrancar s reiatsu. She sat up and looked at the floor, a word of warning already on her lips, until she caught herself while noticing the sound-asleep Ichigo.

For a moment she considered waking him up. Then she decided against it, grabbed the Substitute Badge, and pressed it against her chest, just like Ichigo had explained. Immediately her Gigai fell to the ground and she opened the window and jumped out.

There it was. A form, clad entirely in white, contrasted with the black sky of the night. As the blonde came closer, she noticed it was a girl that looked about 14 years old. She wore glasses and she had short white hair in a short ponytail. The thing that stood out the most, however, was the number five that was tattooed across her left eye.

Her lips curled up in a cruel smile and when Harribel came to a standstill. She then was examined by the white haired girl.

Welcome, Tia Harribel. I've been expecting you. As she said the words she held up her palms, and a long spear appeared in her hands. In response to the threat the dark-skinned woman drew her sword.

As soon as she had her sword in her right hand, she felt her body scream out in protest. She still hadn't recovered enough to do her sword release that was for sure. But she could beat the Seventh Espada without it. Couldn't she?

**End of Chapter 3!**

**Hope you liked it.**

**Sorry for taking so long, but in my defense, it is actually quite hard to write in Harribel's P.O.V.**

**Next time there will be a fight. Finally...**

**And it will be inIchigo's P.O.V!**

**See ya!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey everyone, this is chapter four of my IchiXHali story.**

**I do, sadly enough, not own bleach, or any of its including characters.**

**I am really, really sorry for taking so long...I had a lot of work to do regarding school & the likes... **

**This chapter shows how, in my opinion, incomplete Ichigo's power used to be.**

**Enjoy reading.**

"thoughts"

'speech'

_flashback_

Chapter four: Death carries a giant butherknife

****Ichigo's eyes flashed open. For a moment, he didn't know what had awakened him. Then he felt the two clashing Reiatsu. He sat up, and noticed Hallibel was gone.

'damn it!' he cursed, and looked for his badge. He found it after moving Hallibel's gigai, and changed into his spirit form. Without looking back, he rushed out of the window, in the direction of the fight. He just hoped he wouldn't be to late.

Just as Ichigo drew close to the battle, he saw a white clad figure fall to the ground. Rushing forward, and somehow managed to catch Hallibel, who was bleeding from several wounds, all of which had only just missed the vital spots.

He gently laid her down on the ground. She wasn't in a life threatening condition. Even with what little healing magic he knew, he could heal her. After studying her for a while, he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and whispered. 'Just stay still. I'll be right back' and jumped into the sky.

He looked at the figure in front of him. She was obviously an arrancar. Judging from numerous fragments of white hollow armor, she had already released her sword. The most outstanding thing about her appearence was the hollow mask that covered the upper half of her face. Where the mask covered her eyes, it looked a pair of glasses. On her head were two feeler like antennes, that waved in the else that marked her as something more than just a human, was the long tail, that waved around her. It had to be at least twice as long as her, and ended in a sharp white spear tip, which was stained in blood. And last but not least, her hands. Her nails had thickened, and had grown several centimeters, now as long as roughly one finger.

'If it isn't the substitute shinigami. I've been expecting you.' she said, smirking.

'Whatever. Are you the one who did that to Hallibel?' he asked, even though he already knew the answer.

'Yes. What about it?'

'Nothing. It just makes me want to return the favor.' Ichigo said, unsheating his sword.

'And what makes-' the arrancar was cut short as Ichigo appeared in front of her. Her eyes went wide, but as his swing made its way to her neck, she was suddenly gone, and when he twirled around, she was standing behind him. He slashed at her, but she was already gone. Before he could recover, he received a kick to his chin. She had simply ducked under his sword, before he had swinged it.

The orange haired teen jumped backwards, and re-examinated his opponent

He attacked again, using shunpõ to get behind the girl. But when his blade came down, it was blocked by the her tail. Then she was gone. He looked around. There was a surge of reiatsu, and her tail came at him from his left side, surrounding him. He tried to block it, but when his sword was in place,the tail was gone, and there was a sharp pain in his back. He turned his head. Obviously enough, there she was standing, several of her nails impaled in his body. She seemed to be able to fire those things at will. His suspiscion was confirmed when he noticed the nails on her left hand regrowing. He used shunpõ to put some distance between them.

"_It's like she already knows what I am going to do, before I actually do it."_ he thought,

He started attacking her again, trying to get to know her abilities. Her released state Reiatsu was higher than his own, but he hadn't released his sword yet. But he should at least have been able to hit her.

'Chè. Someone like you would never be able to hurt me, much less kill.' she said, her facial expression growing bored.

Ichigo didn't answer. He looked his opponent up and down, trying to decide how to take her on.

He dashed forwards, but just like the last time, she was already standing to his left, the side that was the furthest away from his sword. (he holds his sword in his right hand)

Ichigo however, being the fast learning guy he is, had antacipated this, and had started chanting before he dashed. '_Sprinkled on the bones of the beast! Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring. Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. The sound of warring spears fills the empty castle!._ Hadõ 63: Raikõhõ!' A blast of bright yellow light shot towards the arrancar, but yet again, she had already moved before the attack was even there.

'don't you get it, Shinigami? Your attacks cannot reach me, no matter how hard you try. No matter what you do, it won't help you. You cannot overcome the difference in our powers. Your fate has been sealed.'

'We'll see' Ichigo replied, and he grabbed his sword with both hands, and Reiatsu started to emanate from him.

'Slice through the forsaken heaven, Zangetsu!'

As the orange haired teen spoke this words, the black sky was lit up by a blueish white Reiatsu, and when it died down, his sword had changed from a regular looking katana to something that looked more like a giant butcher knife, as one of his opponents had once stated.

Ichigo smirked one of his confident smirks. Ever since he had managed to seal his sword properly, he had noticed that just like with his bankai, his shikai greatly improved his speed, not to mention power. And there was another bonus to his shikai. Because of the fact that Zangetsu was a combat-type sword, the release also sharpened his reflexes and senses.

'So now you have a bigger sword. What now?' the arrancar asked, her eyes resting on zangetsu.

"_Be careful Ichigo. She might be hiding something..."_ zangetsu's voice spoke in his head.

"_I know...I won't give her the chance to use it. Don't worry, I have a plan..."_ and fhe told zangetsu what he was going to do.

Then, he attacked. He concentrated. This wasn't going to be easy, seeing as how he wasn't that proficient in kidõ not Hadõ yet.

'Way of destruction no.21: sekienton!' Red smoke appeared, hiding the 3rd divisions captain from sight.

Within the red cloud, Ichigo stood, concentrating and chanting

When he was ready, he jumped out of the smoke, and shouted: 'Way of binding no.62: Hyapporankan!' and a blueish glowing rod appeared in his free hand, and as soon as he threw it at his opponent, it rappidly multiplied, forming about a hundred short rods that rained down on the arrancar.

Then, he dashed forward, ready to intercept the arrancar, should she try to avoid his spell. She did.

She dashed towards the right, but found Ichigo in her way. As he started to bring down his blade, he noticed the ball of orange energy, which had formed in her palm. _"Shit, A cero!"_ he though. By the looks of it, it was about to be fired. Suddenly, Ichigo remembered something Urahara had told him just before his tryouts for a captain's seat.

"_Listen Ichigo. Your Zanpakutou is quite like my own. You may think that you have mastered it completely, but that is far from the truth. You have only discovered your sword's offensive abilities, and because your fighting style revolves mainly around attacking, this isn't that bad. But to be a captain, you have to be able to defend as well. There will be times that defending is the way to win a fight. After your initiation, you will train with me on discovering Zangetsu's defensive abilities."_

"_What if I am unable to do it?" Ichigo had asked, doubting the importance of defending. As they said: the best defence is a good offense._

"_You will die." Urahara had simply stated, and he had laughed behind his fan._

He had no time to doubt. He had, judging by experience, only several seconds before that cero would be fired of, and even though his technique wasn't complete yet, he didn't have a choice.

'Cresent moon shield!' he shouted, and just as the beam of energy shot towards him, a black circle formed in front of the orange haired captain. When the Cero made contact, there was a bright white flash, and then the Cero was gone.

Ichigo noticed that the arrancar was staring at him in total confusion, or rather, at the thing before him. Where the black circle had been was now a cresent moon, about the one fourth the size of a full moon. The rest of the circle was still pitch black.

'W-What is that?' The arrancar asked. As the words left her mouth, there was a rumble, and then, a shockwave burst from the black circle, sending the arrancar flying. After that, both the cresent moon and the black circle disappeared.

'Chè. You only managed to fill a quarter of it. How disappointing.' Ichigo said, and he readied his sword.

'What do you mean by that.?'

'Lemme explain it to ya. If an opponent uses an energy based attack, my shield will absorb the energy of the attack, and send it back to him. The bigger the amount of energy, the closer the shield will come to forming a full moon.'

'And what happens when the moon becomes full?'

'Your guess is as good as mine...' and with that, Ichigo attacked, determined to finish it this time.

**A/n Sorry about the cliffhanger, I just couldn't come up with more...**

**Also...I apologize for being taking so long...and don't get me started on Zangetu's release **

**phrase...I just make it up as I go...**

**hope you liked it.**

**Oh by the way, I pre-apollogize for the next chapter...I will be on holiday for about five weeks, and not be able to acces anything with internet whatsoever...not mention I have a writers block of epic proportions...I barely managed to finish this one...**


	5. Chapter 5

**I know, I know...should've updated long ago and all but...let's just say having to write several stories at the time is quite demanding. And don't get me started on the amounts of homework I get...**

**Anyway, here is chapter five...**

"_thought"/zanpakutou _

'speech'

the speed of a thought vs the speed of a sword. And some other stuff

Heavily panting, Ichigo stepped back. He still wasn't used to using only 20 percent of his power. But still, in his opinion, it should have been enough to defeat this arrancar. Seeing as how she had already sustained several injuries from her fight with hallibel, it shouldn't be this hard to deal her a killing blow. And yet he was the one covered in fresh wounds, while she kept evading his attacks without any visible effort.

Once again, the thought that she already knew what he was going to do occurred to him.

"_...no visible effort..."_

"_...It's like she already knows what I am going to do, before I even do it!..."_

Then he remembered how, just after he had told zangetsu about his plan of attack, she had dodged all his attacks, like she could read his mind, rather than his attacks.

Read his mind...?

"_Yes, Ichigo, it's probably as you think. I suspect she has been reading your mind, and overhearing our conversations ever since the battle started." _Zangetsu spoke.

The substitute shinigami mentally slapped himself. Of course! This would also explain how hallibel, powerful as she was, had been beaten that easily.

His mental rant was interrupted by the arrancar, who said: 'So you've finally figured it out. That's about time.'

The only thing Ichigo could think of saying was: 'That is one of the cheesiest line's you can say being the bad guy, you know that?'

his only response was a glare

"_Listen Ichigo, Being able to read one's mind gives you an advantage, but not one we cannot overcome. It's like being able to read one's movements. But knowing where and how an attack will strike is meaningless if-"_

'If you can't keep up with it!' Ichigo said aloud, getting what Zangetsu was trying to tell him. The outcome of this battle would depend on speed, and speed alone.

'You're not the first to come to that conclusion.' The arrancar said. 'but like the rest of my opponents, you will not succeed.'

'We'll see' the orange haried teen merely replied, and he dashed forward, but just like the last time, the arrancar sidestepped the blow, appearently without any effort whatsoever.

But Ichigo wasn't done yet. He had expected this, and used shunpo to get behind his opponent, and brought his sword down once more. When she ducked and backed of, he chased her, starting a game of supernatural tag.

After about five minutes, The stopped, both of them panting. Ichigo re-examinated his opponent. Even though the injuries she had sustained should slow her down, she kept evading his blows.

He sighted.

'You know, I really wanted to avoid using this, and Zaraki isn't going to let me live this down, but I guess I don't really have a choice.'

With that, he ripped his hand acros his face, in the all to familiar movement used to call upon his hollow powers

He could feel the swirl of black energy surround him, and shortly after he felt the cold material of the mask against his face.

'So that is what master Ichimaru meant by hollowification. It doesn't matter.' she raised her claws, and just as she prepared to attack, she noticed that her target was no longer there. Then, she noticed something else. A sharp, burning pain in her chest, and something wet and warm trickling down her body. Her vision blurred, and became darker and darker. Her Brain managed to register one more thing: The thought that had entered her mind just seconds before the the pain had struck.; _"Kill"_

The word echoed through her mind, and then everything went black.

As his mask dissoveld into the air, so did the hollow he had killed. Releasing his shikai, Ichigo sheated his sword, and for two seconds, his thoughts wandered to the nameless arrancar he had just killed, but then he remembered why he was here in the first place, and he dove to the ground, landing just beside Hallibel's white clad form.

Careful, he flipped her over, and examinated her wounds. Her life wasn't in danger, but still, she had sustained some serious injuries. His hands, enveloped in a green glow hovered over her injuried body. He wasn't a professional, but still, he should be able to heal the wounds

When all her injuries had been healed, safe for several minor bruises, he picked her up, and used shunpo to get back to his home.

Hallibel p.o.v.

Clashes of feeling of a strong pair of arms carrying her. The feeling of rushing air. Hallibel opened her eyes, pulling herself out of a black abyss. As she looked around the room, she had a déja vu. Ichigo Kurosaki's room. That probably meant that he had somehow defeated the mind reading arrancar, and had brought her back here. She felt uneasy. She had never liked being in someones debt. Especially not when it was someone she used to consider an enemy.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the door of the room that flew open, revealing Ichigo, who was carrying a plate piled with way to much food for one person.

'I brought us breakfast.' the orange haired male said, and he put down the plate.

'Luckily, both my dad and my sisters left already.' he said, and then picked up a slice of toast, and started eating it

Hallibel just gazed at the window.

'Why did you come for me?' she asked quietly.

'Whaf wif you fay?' the teen asked, his mouth full with toast. He swallowed, and repeated: 'What did you say?'

the blonde arrancar resisted the urge to chuckle, and said:'I asked you why you came for me.'

'Well, because...' Ichigo fell stil. He hadn't really been thinking, but he didn't think that would satisfy her.

'Just because. I couldn't let you get chopped you to pieces, could I?'

'I guess so...' she replied, taking a bite of toast.

An akward silence fell, and for a couple of seconds, none of the two knew what to say.

Ichigo p.o.v.

Then, suddenly, there was a tinkling sound, and a hell butterfly appeared, clearly visible against the first light of the rising sun that peeked through the curtains

As it sat down on Ichigo's finger, he heard the voice of the twelfth dvision's lieutenant, Nemu Kurotsuchi.

'To Captain Kurosaki of the third division; Several Menos Grande have appeared in the Dangai You are hereby requested to dispose of them, and after that, you are required for your division's patrol and including paperwork.'

'Awww man!' Ichigo exclaimed. Like every seated officer, with the exeption of a few, like Ise Nanao, he hated papwork with passion. Not only that, it reminded him to much of homework.

'What is it?' Hallibel asked, her voice once again devoid of emotion.

'Menos grande. I have to go and dispose of them. And after that I have to do...Paperwork.' he shuddered with the last word.

'You need help disposing of those hollows?' she had said the words without thinking, or meaning to say them. _"Why did I say that?" _she wondered, but she was interrupted by Ichigo

'Normally, I'd say no, but if you help me, we'd be finished within several minutes, and I need every minute I can possibly spare... Paperwork, you know. So Yes, if you don't mind of course...'

'I don't.'

Ichigo pressed his badge against his body, and his spirit form stumbled out. Then, he tossed the badge to Hallibel, and stabbed his sword in the air infront of him, and twisted it like a key, causing the double dours to appear, and the shinigami and the arrancar stepped inside.

While they were running through the dimension, Hallibel said; 'Isn't there some kind of device that cleans this place?'

'There used to be one, but Aizen destroyed it, and they are still busy constructing the new one, so in the mean time, either units are dispatched, or they ask me, since I use this place anyway.' Ichigo replied.

After a short while, the Menos came into view. There were about seventeen of them, all of them slowly marching towards the opening in soul society.

In unision, both the blonde and the carrot-top jumped into the air, drawing their swords, and swinging them down, Hallibel using a yellow cero, and Ichigo a white-blueish Getsuga Tenshou.

About four of the hollows were killed instantly, and a few more were lightly wounded. Immediatly after landing on their feet, both warriors leaped forwards, swords cutting their way through the black cloak-like skin of the hollows, who blindly fired Ceros at the running forms that were the source of their agony.

When the last menos dissolved, about 5 minutes later, Ichigo re-sheated his sword, as did Hallibel.

'That was even faster than I thought it would be. We make a good team.' Ichigo said.

The teal eyed woman looked at him for a couple of seconds, and then walked towards the white square that was their destination.

Ichigo was the first to pass through the gate, and the guards greeted him. When they noticed Hallibel emerging from the tunnel, they tensed up, and reached for their swords.

'don't worry, she is with me.' Ichigo said, not bothering to hide the annoyance in his voice.

'But, Sir-' the guard was cut of by the substitute soulreaper.

'I can guess what you are going to say, but I'd advise you not to bother at all.' he said, and his reiatsu flared for a second.

'Y-yessir.' The guard said, and they went back to their posts.

'Hallibel, could you hide your reiatsu for a bit? If we continue like this, the old man will probably send about half of all the soul reapers in seireitei after us, and all the captains as well.'

she merely nodded, and the pressure of her energy faded

They made their way to the third division's barracks, and when they reached the door of the offices,

Ichigo turned around, and said to the dark skinned arrancar; 'You know, even though I am with you, I can't guarantee that none of the shinigami will attack you. If they do, please just knock 'em unconscious. I can't afford any casualties.'

Again, he was answered by just a nod.

Then he opened the door, revealing the captain's office of the third squad. Then, as he made his way inside, there was a battle-cry resembling yell, and something clad in black jumped down from the nearest bookshelf.

Hallibel p.o.v.

'You know, even though I am with you, I can't guarantee that none of the shinigami will attack you. If they do, please just knock 'em unconscious. I can't afford any casualties.' she noted an appologetic expression on his face as he said the words. Hallibel merely nodded, still lost in her own thoughts.

Much to her own annoyance, she noticed that Ichigo had stood up for her, not to mention saved her life several times, something she didn't like in the least. She had always thought of herself as being a strong, independend woman, who could handle whatever life presented her with. And now, it appeared she, who in terms of strenght outclassed about 95% of all the shinigami, was depending on a boy, whose 17 years of age were a mere blip on her lifetime. Certainly she should be able to take care of herself? Right?

But then again, no matter how hard she tried to deny it, or how many times she told herself it was a dream, she clearly remembered a tiny spark of foreign emotion when Ichigo had said; 'She is with me.'

Just then, she entered the office, only to hear a yell, and to see a black blurr leap towards Ichigo. Automatically, she reached for her sword, but then, she remembered that the orange haired captain had asked her to refrain from attacking his squad members, and she relaxed.

Not even bothering to draw his Zanpakutou, the brown eyed teen glanced at the fast-descending form. It was a little boy, seven years old at most, with spiky light blue hair, and slightly darker blue eyes, wearing the standard shinigami uniform. In his hands was a Zanpakuto, which was presently coming down towards the head of the squad three captain.

'Old geezer! I challenge you to a duel for the captain's seat of this squad!' the boy yelled, bringing down his sword, only to have it caught by Ichigo's left hand, while with his right, he had grabbed the collar of the boy's shinigami robes, and was now holding him in the air, despite the blue-haired child's best efforts to get free. Eventually, the kid stopped strugling, and just looked at Ichigo, who was looking very annoyed.

'Who are you calling 'Old geezer' you little brat?' Ichigo said, shaking the kid by it's collar.

'Ow! I'm calling you an old geezer 'cause that's what you are!'

'Yeah? Well then, how about this geezer throws you in the pond?'

As the two males continued to bicker, the door was opened, and in the door opening stood a girl who was obviously the boy's big sister. She had the same light blue hair, but her eyes were slightly lighter than her brother's. She appeared to be around fifteen years old, but then, Hallibel knew from her own experience, looks are deceiving when it comes to spirit beings.

'My deepest appogies sir! I just lost sight of him for only a second, and then-'

Ichigo looked up away from his argument with the boy, and noticed the girl.

'Oh, it's you Akiko. Don't worry about it.' Just as the teen spoke the words, the boy pointed his index and middle finger at him, and yelled; 'Hado no.1 Sho!' had this been done by someone with highter reiatsu than his, Ichigo would have been pushed away about two centimeters, seeing as it was only a weak spell. But Since it was a small boy, he stood firm, causing the caster of the spell, in this case the boy, to be propelled backwards, exactly into his sister's arms, who gasped at the sudden weight.

'That'll do for now.' Ichigo said, brushing some non-existant dust from his haori.

The girl walked out, and returned after a few minutes.

'Is there something I can do for you, Sir?'

Just then, she seemed to notice Hallibel, and in a reflex, her hand shot towards her sword. Before she could do anything, Ichigo said; 'It's alright. Akiko, I'd like you to meet Hallibel. She is here as my guest. She is not to be harmed by anyone, or they will be punished as if they had attacked a fellow squad member. Understood?'

'Yes sir.' the girl replied, and she bowed slightly.

'And for the tenth time, stop the bowing already. Your experience as a seated officer is far greater than mine.' he sighted, and turned to the teal eyed arrancar

'Hallibel, this is Akiko. She is my third seat. If there is anything you need, ask her.'

The blonde merely nodded, and sat down on the nearest couch, placed her sword in her lap, and closed her eyes, waiting patiently for the orange haired captain to finish his work.

**Alrighty...that was the fifth chapter...**

**I know it's a bit of an open end. And I once again apologize for being this late with the update.**

**Reviews are appreciated!**


	6. Chapter 6

**First of all, I´ll have to apologize for once again, being late. What can I say...I am a busy man...and my laziness doesn't help either...not to mention my upcoming exams...**

**Hope you guys enjoy**

**Shark empress six**

Ichigo groaned and stood up. Sitting behind a desk for over two hours definitly took it out of you.

He stretched his arms, and did a few quick flash steps around to move to completely lose the stiff feeling in his limbs.

Then, he noticed Hallibel, who was still in the exact same pose on the couch, meditating.

He walked towards her, and softly poked her shoulder. What he didn't anticipate, however was her reaction. As soon as his finger made contact with the white fabric of her attire, she leapt towards him, and drew her sword while in mid air. The next thing he knew, he was pinned to the wall, and the point of the short sword was hovering between his eyes.

Just when the blonde arrancar was about to lower her sword, the door flew open, revealing Akiko, bickering with another girl he didn't know.

'Sir, could you tell Akiko to-'

'Sir , Why can't we just-'

Both girls stopped in mid sentence, dumbstruck by the events in front of them.

The unknown girl flushed, while the third seat frowned.

'P-please excuse us for intruding!' the brown haired girl stammered, and slammed the door shut.

Only two seconds later, the door was cut in half, and Akiko stormed inside, sword drawn, and pointed it at Hallibel.

'Put you sword down and let go of the captain!' she demanded, visibly readying herself to fight.

'Whoa, whoa. Hold it just a second!' Ichigo exclaimed.

'This is just a misunderstanding...Right Hallibel?' he looked at the dark-skinned arrancar.

At the mention of her name, the girl's teal eyes cleared, realizing what exactly she was doing. She sheathed her sword, and stepped back.

'See? Now, Akiko, please sheath your sword as well, and-' Before he could finish his sentence, Akiko shot forward, positioning herself between Ichigo and Hallibel.

'I don't trust her.' she growled, still holding her sword at the ready.

'Akiko, I appreciate your loyalty, but please sheath your sword already. And stop releasing so much Reiastsu, you're drawing unnecessary attention to us.'

Ichigo's voice was slightly louder than normal at this point, and the irritation in it was easy to hear.

The lieutenant sheathed her sword, and reluctantly moved away from her captain.

'Alright. Now, I have to go the squad four barracks, to pick up some medical files, and to check up on some of the wounded men. Both of you, stay here and wait for me to come back. If anything unusual happens, send a hell butterfly. I'll be there as fast as I can. Understood?' the carrot-top said, forehead-flicking both Akiko and Hallibel. And then his image flickered, and he was gone.

The two women looked at each other for a moment, and Akiko huffed and turned away, while Hallibel merely sat down on the couch.

with Ichigo

Ichigo entered the squad four barracks, and was greeted by none other than Hanatarou.

'Hey Ichigo. What are you doing here?' the short boy asked, sweeping his broom across the already clean floor.

'I'm here to see Unohana.' the squad three captain replied.

'Well...I believe she is currently checking up some guys from the eleventh division...again. If your meeting is scheduled, then it would be no problem.'

'Alright, thanks, Hanatarou.' Ichigo said, and he moved past the seventh seat, towards the door that had a sign on it that said: 'examination room.'

He pushed the door open, only to see all the beds on the left side of the big room occupied, by several shinigami, all of whom seemed to belong to the Zaraki's squad, judging from the weird hairdos.

'Ah, Mr. Kurosaki. I was wondering when you would arrive. What brings you here?' said carrot-top looked in the direction of the voice, only to see the fourth squad captain, Unohana Retsu.

Ichigo scowled. As if she didn't know why he was here. She was the one who issued the order for his physical check-up. _"I don't need a check-up. I'm fine dammit!"_ he mentally screamed.

'Did you say something, Mr. Kurosaki?' Unohana asked, squinting her eyes.

Ichigo swallowed. For some reason, he felt like she knew exactly what he had just been thinking.

'Er..I didn't say anything. And I am here to get the files that contain the results of the third squad's physical examination, and for my own check up.'

'Oh, why didn't you say so?' Unohana asked, and she led him to a bed in the far corner of the room.

'Sit down, please.' Not wanting to get Unohana on his bad side, Ichigo decided to, for the time being, just do as she said.

'Alright. After you have had your own check-up, you can proceed to Isane's office. She will give you the documents you need.' the fourth squad captain said, while rummaging through her medical kit. _( I suppose she has one..)_

About ten minutes later, when Ichigo was about to put the upper part of his shihakusho back on, there was a tinkling sound, and a Hell butterfly appeared. As it headed for Ichigo, the third squad captain couldn't help but wonder what had gone wrong...He extended his hand, and the butterfly landed on his index finger.

"_To captain Kurosaki; One of the patrol squads has been ambushed bu a group of Adjuchas classed hollows near the border of district 18 . The Arrancar and myself have gone to provide back-up. Please send a reinforcement squad and a healer."_ Akiko's voice was unmistakable.

Ichi tensed up. Since district 18 was a fairly rich district, and therefore less often intruded by hollows, Ichigo had sent Raidon (**a/n** the little blue haired kid) to accompany the patrol squad for that area, seeing as how the boy had insisted on tagging along to witness a patrol for himself. No wonder Akiko had gone herself. She had to make sure her little brother was alright. Drawing a couple of deep breaths, the orange haired teen cleared his mind, and turned to Unohana, who had a quizzical look her face.

'Captain Kurosaki, is there something wrong?' She asked.

'Area 18 has been infiltrated by hollows, and several members of my squad seem to be in trouble.' Ichigo replied, while extending his right hand in front of him, fingers spread. There was a soft glow, and Zangetsu appeared in his hand.

'Captain Unohana, would you be so kind as to send one of your best healers to that eastern border of district 18?' the carrot top asked.

'Of course, but wouldn't it be more effective if you took the healer in question with you?' the braided woman asked.

'No. They'll only slow me down.' Ichigo replied, matter-of-factly, and after that, his form shimmered for a second, and disappeared, leaving several cracks in the floor from where he took of.

in the mean time, squad three barracks.

Hallibel was sitting on the couch, staring out of the window. Sub-consciously, she was rubbing the spot on her forehead were Ichigo had forehead-flicked her.

Just when she started to feel bored, she sensed several spikes of Reiatsu, and judging from the other girl in the room, they were some kind of signal; the blue haired girl jumped up, and started to rush from to the window, but Hallibel moved to the window before she could jump out of it.

'Were are you going?' She asked, raising one of her eyebrows.

'Out of my way.' The girl merely snapped.

'You shouldn't go away without informing your captain.' she stated, knowing the girl would agree.

She seemed to consider it, but then, she whispered something, and a black butterfly appeared on her finger, and left throughout the window.

'So what is going on?' Hallibel asked, almost certain something was wrong.

'Not that it's any of you business, but one of our patrol squads has been ambushed by adjuchas just moments ago.' it was obvious to the blonde arrancar that she had been meaning to say something along the lines of; 'Your kind'

'And my little brother happens to be with the ambushed squad..' The blue-haired girl choked out, fear evident in her eyes. Upon hearing this, Hallibel felt her eyes widen.

Akiko p.o.v.

She barely managed to tell the arrancar the truth, and when she did, Akiko noticed the teal eyes widen.

Instead of replying, the arrancar in front of her, took her sword from Ichigo's desk, and strapped it to her back.

'What are you doing?' She asked the blonde girl, grabbing her own sword.

'Are you strong enough to take on more than three adjuchas classed hollows at the same time?' was her reply.

'What's it to you?'

'The young should not suffer needlessly. Let us be of.' With that, the dark skinned woman jumped out of the window, with a speed greater than her own, and in the direction of the clashes of Reiatsu.

Hallibel p.o.v.

Both women raced towards the battleground, their forms flickering every several seconds.

The silence was broken by Hallibel.

'What kind of Zanpakutou do you have?'

The question obviously surprised the lieutenant.

'Why are you asking?'

'If we want to cooperate with maximum efficiency, it might come in handy to know each others battle capacity.'

Visibly reluctant, Akiko agreed.

'Elemental type, shadow based attacks, short to mid-range mostly . My kidou abilites vary; I am quite good at defensive spells, but I don't know more than 40 offensive ones, and my hand to hand skills are somewhat above average.' Akiko stated, and she shot a curious gaze at Hallibel. 'And you?'

'My Tiburón utilizes water based attacks, both long and mid-ranged, even though I'd like to avoid using it in the oncoming battle. The only magic we arrancar practice are Cero, and because I used to be one of the espada, I am capable of firing the most high level Cero. That would be all.' Hallibel stated.

'Alright then.' Akiko spoke in a determined voice. 'We're going to do this.'

Hallibel merely nodded in silent agreement.

As they drew closer to the district that was their goal, the two women could make out the vague sounds of explosions.

When they finally arrived at the battlefield, it was apparent that there were somewhat more than three hollows; approximately 20 were running about. The patrol squad had erected a barrier around the battle scene.

Looking around, Hallibel noticed that most of the hollows had concentrated around a small building, with a closed door, and in front of it, fending of the monsters were three shinigami.

'Over there.' She said, and she pointed to the scene below.

'Let's go!' Akiko merely replied, and they dashed downwards.

They appeared in front of the three warriors, and Akiko asked; 'What is the current situation?'

One of the three guys, an average aged guy with short black hair answered. Hallibel assumed he was the one in charge. 'We have several injuries, some of them life threatening if not treated soon. The three you see here are the ones whou could still fight to the best of their abilities.

'We'll take it from here.' Akiko replied, pointing at Hallibel and herself.

'Are you sure? I mean,- she used to be a hollow and-' he was cut of by Akiko.

'I know what you mean. But we are in no position to reject whatever help we can get. And if Captain Kurosaki trusts her, I guess that so do I.' Akiko said, looking sternly at the man.

Then, she turned to her brother. 'Are you alright?' She asked, her voice full of concern.

'You better believe it! I have killed several hollows already!' The boy shouted, swinging his sword excitedly. The blue haired girl hid the shock in her eyes upon hearing this. She would talk about it later.

'Anyway, you guys go inside. W-' Akiko was cut of by Hallibel, who said;

'Could you errect a shield around the building and yourselves?'

'Of course. Why do you ask?'

'I am going to release a good amount of my Reiatsu. Most hollows will flee when feeling the pressure of a more powerful hollow, because their instinct tells them they will get eaten if they don't. But the amount I am going to release might crush some of your injured soldiers.' the blonde woman explained.

'It's worth a try.' Akiko finally decided, after she had thought it through.

'Way of binding no 73.: Tozanshõ' she yelled, and an inverted pyramid flickered into existence, the point of which was embedded in the ground.

As soon as the barrier appeared, Hallibel unsheathed her sword, and held it out in front of her, and pressed her hand against it. She closed her eyes, and a frown appeared on her brow.

Then, the air around her started to shimmer with yellow energy, and even within the barrier,which wasn't as stable as it should be, due to the fact that this was one of the harder spells, Akiko could feel the immense pressure of the blonde arrancar's reiatsu. An involuntary shiver ran up her spine. The Reiatsu still had a hollow-like taste to it, effectively scaring the men inside who didn't know what was happening half to death, and there were some murmurs about what could possibly going on outside.

Outside the hut, most of the hollows had either disintegrated from the sheer pressure, or fled, as the blonde had predicted.

There were some, however, who simply licked their lips at the notice of this much spiritual energy.

Akiko stepped back outside, and a door appeared in the barrier, which closed again after she passed through. She immediately noticed that there were only about five hollows left. She readied her sword, unintentionally mimicking the movement of the brown skinned woman next to her.

Just when both were about to strike, a new reiatsu signature appeared. Both women looked up, as they instantly recognized it.

His form flickering into existence, Ichigo appeared on the battlefield. Judging from the enormous spike of energy he had sensed several seconds ago, Hallibel had released a large amount of Reiatsu. Looking at her opponents, he noticed only a few were left.

"_Smart move. She definitely knows her stuff."_ he thought.

Then he noticed both the arrancar and his lieutenant looking at him. Gazing in their eyes, Ichigo could make out only two things; determination, and a message: 'Don't interfere.'

Eventually, he decided to wait and see how things worked out. Also, there was the possibility that he had to keep several officers at bay, who would be drawn to Hallibel's burst of Reiatsu.

back to the battlefield

Both Akiko and Hallibel shifted their stances, and while yellow energy started to concentrate around Hallibel's sword, Akiko yelled; 'Break free from your restraints, enraged shadow spirit!' And she was enclosed in a vortex of crackling black energy. The vortex disappeared after several seconds, revealing Akiko, in a somewhat tattered uniform. The upper part of her Shihakuso had been blasted of, and now she was wearing something similiar to Soifon, only hers was white. What really caught Ichigo's eye however, were the black bandages that enveloped the entire length of her arms, with numerous loose ends softly swaying in the wind. Taking a closer look, he noticed that there were similar black bandages around her ankles, or at least what little he could see of them.

After giving his lieutenant a quick once over, Ichigo decided that the black ribbons/bandages had to be her weapon. He shifted his attention back to the battlefield, and noticed that several hollows had already decided to attack.

As she noticed the hollows charging her, Hallibel readied her sword, and then addressed Akiko; 'You ready?'

'As ready as one can get.' together they charged.

While Hallibel slashed her way through the hollows, Ichigo focused on his lieutenant, because this would be his first time to see her shikai in action.

While she moved, she left behind a trail of what a black trail smoke, and where her feet touched the ground, the earth seemed to morph into a swirling black shadow.

When she attacked a monster, her hands, wrapped in black cloth, seemed to pass right trough them, and shortly after, they disintegrated.

Ichigo's attention shifted back towards Hallibel. Her short sword wove through the air, effectively killing any hollow foolish enough to attack her. Then, he noticed that she was firing _bala_ with her other hand. There was something about the way she moved that seemed to unable him to move his gaze away from her.

After a short while, all the hollows had either fled, or where dead. Hallibel sheathed her sword, and walked back towards the small shack in which the squad three members were hiding.

Just then, Ichigo noticed a movement in the corner of his eyes, and he felt a vaguely familiar Reiatsu. Knowing what was to come, Ichigo dashed towards Hallibel.

He was just in time. He appeared behind her, grabbed her waist and jumped to the right. The exact same moment his feet touched the ground again, a barrage of senbon needles slammed into the wood where Hallibel had just been standing.

'Whew. Close call. ' Ichigo muttered, looking in the direction of the attack.

Just then, a well known voice interrupted the silence.

'What do you think you're doin'?' Then, there was a loud groan, and several seconds later, a familiar redhead emerged from the woods.

'Yo, Ichigo. Sorry about the attack, I assure you the guilty officer will be punished.' And with that, he inclined his head towards the limp body he was carrying on his left shoulder.

'Yeah...make sure it doesn't happen again, will ya, Renji. I'd hate to have to hurt one of your squad members.

'Will do.' With that, the newly appointed captain flash-stepped away.

After a couple of seconds, the silence was broken by Hallibel.

'Erm...Mr. Kurosaki, would you mind letting go of me?'

Predictably enough, Ichigo turned beet red, tried to stutter an explanation, and jumped away from Hallibel, back to the ground were his squad members were waiting for him.

FF to that evening

Ichigo looked up at the ceiling, pondering todays events. He shifted his weight to make himself more comfortable on his office couch, which he was sleeping on because Hallibel was sleeping in his bed in the room next to him, which he himself rarely used.

Everything had gone quite well, but he'd have to make sure to send Raidon, his youngest squad member, on less dangerous missions.

Also, there was the case of the man that had tried to attack Hallibel. He had recognized the soul reaper in question instantly, despite not seeing his face. It was one of Renji's seated officers, who seemed to be under the impression that he deserved to be the squad three captain, instead of Ichigo.

Lastly, his mind wandered across the part of the day he, for reasons he didn't quite understand, remembered best; the part where he'd been holding the teal-eyed woman in his arms.

Truth to be told, he hadn't even realized he was still holding her protectively, until she herself asked for him to let go of her.

Ichigo shook his head, and rolled to his side.

_'I shouldn't be thinking that kind of thing. That was just purely professional interest. I couldn't have let her hit by that attack, could I?' _ clearing his mind of all things, the captain of squad three closed his eyes, ready for whatever the next day might bring.

Hallibel p.o.v.

Shifting uncomfortably on her bed, Hallibel was trying to find the right position to fall asleep. Though it didn't seem like she would anytime soon. Sighting, she just just rested her head on the pillow, looking at the door which separated the bedroom from the office. She closed her eyes, and concentrated. Aside from the steady rhythm of Ichigo's breath, there was nothing that indicated she wasn't alone. Well, that and the Reiatsu signatures that belonged to the other captains, who apparently were still busy doing their paperwork.

As she her eyelids grew heavier, the last clear thing she remembered was the feel of a certain orange haired captain's arm around her waist, and the worried expression he'd had on his face during the attack

**So...Hope you guys enjoyed...**

**If ya got any tips, or just things you want me to know, or whatever, sent me a review/message...**


	7. Chapter 7

**(A/N)**

**Howya'll doin'? **

**For starters, I'd like to clean up a few mistakes on my side; I know my spelling sucks...other than that, I'd like to point out that A; the unnamed arrancar that was defeated by Ichigo was the fifth espada. Initially, I wanted to made it the seventh, but as someone correctly pointed out, Hallibel would probably have been able to defeat number seven even without her resurrection. Also, it provided a nice opportunity to show how much Ichigo has improved. Remember how much trouble he had with Nnoitra? **

**Secondly, Akiko is the third seat, not the lieutenant...My apologies if I messed that up...When I write, my eye for detail seems to evaporate...**

**Lastly, I guess this Fanfic is now officially A.U. When I started this story, the battle with Aizen had not yet transpired. So I just took a hunch at what could happen. As of now, my story no longer matches the plot line...I will, however, do my best to stay as true to the story as possible, hence the reference to the Karakura battle later on...**

**that's it folks. Enjoy! (sorry for the Authors note, btw.)**

Shark empress seven

* * *

_"Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! On the wall of blue flame, inscribe a twin lotus. In the abyss of conflagration, wait at the far heavens."_

As the last word left his lips, blue energy gathered in Ichigo's hands, forming a crackling sphere of radiant blue energy. Straining to control the ball of blue enery, which seemed to posses a mind of it's own, he brought his hands upwards, and shouted; 'Way of destruction no. 73; Sōren Sōkatsui!'

Then, there was a bright blue flash, a loud 'BANG' and next thing he knew, the squad three captain was lying on his back on the ground, feeling like he had just received a powerful punch to his stomach, and several people looking down on him.

It had been a two weeks since Ichigo had first brought Hallibel to the Seireitei. In the passing time, the both of them had travelled back and forth between the spirit realm, and the earth.

Ichigo had decided to continue on training his kidõ, much to the delight of the majority of the lieutenants, and even some of the captains had come to see how he was doing.

'No, Kurosaki-san, you're doing it all wrong again! You're supposed to concentrate and control your Reiatsu.' Tetsuzaemon said, crying tears of frustration.

'Shaddap. You can't do it yourself. How would you know-' the teen started to reply, but he was cut of by another voice.

'Hate to break it to ya strawberry, but that was undoubtedly the most pathetic display of kidou I've ever seen.' The owner of the voice, Rangiku Matsumoto, twirled her hair around her left index finger, and then looked back at Ichigo.

'I-I think it wasn't that bad. You just need some more practice.' Hinamori spoke timidly.

'Practice more? He can't even perform a kidõ spell which is lieutenant level. Not that it matters. Kidõ is such an ugly art.' Ichigo didn't even have to look to know who said that.

'Never fear Kurosaki-san, for I, the great and talented Omeada shall help you to-'

Meanwhile, the orange haired teen started to get frustrated.

'Why the hell are you guys all here anyways? ' he interrupted the lieutenants gathered around him.

'Quite frankly, watching you fail miserably at kidõ is one of the few entertaining things around here.' Rukia piped up.

'Very funny. Now get the hell out of here so I can continue my practice.'

'Eh? No way, you're the best source of amusement since the chappy series.' Rukia's statement was followed by a murmur of agreement.

'Alright then. Staying is at your own risk.' with that, he closed his eyes, and imitated the stance he had seen Urahara use in the battle of Karakura, and started murmuring inaudible.

'He is not doing what I think he is doing, right? Right!' Omeada asked, his voice an octave higher than normal.

'Well...it does the resemble stance required for Hadõ 91...Senjū... Kōten...Taihō...' Tetsuzaemon's voice faded away.

'OH SHI-' everyone flash stepped away, as they realized what Ichigo was about to do.

When everyone was out of sight, the orange haired teen lowered his hand, and smirked.

'Gotta remember that one.' _"No way in hell I'll try that technique anytime soon."_

Deciding he was done for today, Ichigo took off towards his office. He imagined Hallibel and Akiko would be back from their patrol by now.

Curiously enough, the arrancar and his third seat had developed a rather close relationship, and as such, they would often be found together.

And indeed, when he entered his office, both women were sitting on his couch. It appeared Akiko was asking Hallibel something, and the Arrancar was shaking her head. Both women stopped talking when they noticed him. He resisted the temptation of asking them what they had been talking about, and instead just sat down behind his desk.

Then, a hell butterfly flew in through the window, and made it's way towards his third seat. It proceeded to land on her fingertip, flapped it's wings twice, and dissolved into a black smoke.

'So what did it say?' Ichigo inquired.

The blue haired girl smirked, motioned the arrancar to follow her, and walked towards the door.

When she reached the door frame, she turned around, and told him; 'Just a summons for the S.W.A.* I'm going to introduce them to Hallibel.'

And the door slammed, signaling the departure of both women. Shrugging, the orange haired teen turned back to his desk, and the mountain of papers piled upon it.

Several hours later

Hallibel walked back into the office, with Akiko close behind her. Apparently, the duties of the Shinigami's women association consisted mainly of deciding which male officer was the best looking one, which male officer was most popular among the the students of the Shinigami academy, guessing which male officer was best in bed, drinking sake, planning 'reconnaissance missions' to shopping districts on earth, and coming up with barely-legal plans to fund said missions. None of which were particularly relevant to the Arrancar's interests. But it had been nice to meet the other female officers, despite the constant questions about her and Ichigo being a couple.

To her amazement and, she grudgingly admitted, slight dissapointment, Ichigo was nowhere to be found. Instead there was a small note.

"_To Hallibel & Akiko,_

_My assistance was required in Karakura. Will be back later this evening. _

_Ichigo."_

'Well, that explains things. C'mon, let's eat dinner.' Akiko said, and walked towards the small kitchen.

later that day

Closing the door quietly behind him, Ichigo entered his office. He made a mental note to ask the captain-commander, or whoever was in charge of such things, for another bed. Hallibel was occupying his, so he had been sleeping on the couch for two weeks. Not that he minded. But still, a bed was somewhat more comfy than a couch.

He put down Zangetsu on his table, within reach, should something happen. As he lied down on his couch, he pondered the past two weeks. Hallibel had adapted remarkably well. No incidents at all, even though she still didn't speak much. His own squad, wary at first, was gradually opening up to her. Of course the fact that she was close with the third seat helped.

So what now? The captains expected him to somehow get her to tell him what Ichimaru was doing, and, more importantly, where. Provided she knew. Ichigo himself doubted Aizen or Ichimaru had trusted the Espada enough to tell them something like that. In their eyes, they were just expendable soldiers, after all. So what would happen if she didn't know? What if, ultimately, she had to choose between soul society and whatever Ichimaru had to offer? What would she choose? And if, and this was something the orange haired teen didn't like to think about, would he be able to watch her getting killed, or even do it himself?

"_Whoa. Deep thoughts. Chill out Ichigo, when did you start worrying about that Arrancar that much anyway? You've only known her for two weeks, remember?"_ he thought to himself. Deciding it'd be best if he discussed the matter with someone else tomorrow, he shifted his weight, and closed his eyes.

With Hallibel

Hallibel placed Tiburón on the small nightstand. After spending a week travelling between the spirit world and the human world, she felt slightly more at ease. But she still wondered. Even though she hadn't exactly had a warm welcome, there hadn't been any noteable hostile actions against her. Due to the order Ichigo had issued, and the faith the third squat had in their captain, this wasn't such a suprise. But what about the others? Surely there had to be _someone_ who took offense at her mere existence? No, she was being protected from above. And when the high ups protected someone, they usually didn't do so because they thought the someone in question had pretty eyes.

So what could she possibly have that the Shinigami wanted? The answer to that was most likely information. But what kind?

And what would they do if they had the information they needed? Hallibel knew from experience that when someone had fulfilled their role, they were discarded. Like Aizen had done. Like... She pushed the thought from her mind before it could take form.

There were more important matters than dwelling on the past.

For now, she would just watch how things played out. She could always escape when need be.

Trying to push the thoughts about betrayal and fighting Akiko and Ichigo from her mind, she closed her eyes.

* * *

**That's it for now...**

**Damn...It must have been months since I last updated...Sorry about that. Also..,I'll be taking somewhat of a break with this story. I won't discontinue it, but my head is just to full of other things right now. In the meantime, I'll try my hand at some songfics, and I'll also start with some actual fiction...meaning I will update my fictionpress account. Might take a while though.  
**

As some of you might have noticed, I haven't exactly made much progress considering the pairing...At first, it was because I did knew where I wanted to end the story, but not how to get there...I think I've figured that out by now. This chapter served mainly as a small break between the battles, and I like to think I that this chapter made Hallibel look somewhat more like a human, instead of a deadly warrior dressed like a stripper -.-'' feedback would be appreciated.


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